Push-forwards for Witt groups of schemes (Q633010)

The authors define push-forwards for coherent Witt groups along proper morphisms between separated noetherian schemes. Witt groups are defined for triangulated categories \({\mathcal C}\) equipped with a duality, that is with a contravariant endofunctor \(D\) on \({\mathcal C}\) together with a bidual isomorphism of functors \(Id \rightarrow D^2 = D \circ D\) satisfying \(D(\overline{\omega}_A) \circ \overline{\omega}_{DA} = Id_{DA}\), where \(\overline{\omega}\) denotes the canonical natural transformation, for all objects \(A\) of \({\mathcal C}\) [see \textit{P. Balmer}, K-Theory 19, No.~4, 311--363 (2000; Zbl 0953.18003) for details]. A morphism between Witt groups is naturally induced by an exact functor \(F : {\mathcal C}_1 \rightarrow {\mathcal C}_2\) equipped with an isomorphism of exact functors \(\phi : F D_1\rightarrow D_2 F\). The fact that the isomorphism \(\phi\) is not the identity requires the analysis of its interactions with the other morphisms of functors involved. The authors have already discussed such morphisms of functors and diagrams in the setting of closed symmetric monoidal categories [see \textit{B. Calmès} and \textit{J. Hornbostel}, Theory Appl. Categ. 22, 136--198 (2009; Zbl 1178.18005)]. If \({\mathcal C}_1\) and \({\mathcal C}_2\) are closed symmetric monoidal categories, with internal Hom denoted by \([-, -]\), then, given an object \(K\), the functor \(D_K := [-, K ]\) together with the canonical natural transformation defines a weak duality functor. Starting with an exact functor \(f_* : {\mathcal C}_1 \rightarrow {\mathcal C}_2\) which has a left adjoint \(f ^*\) and a right adjoint \(f^!\), there are a natural transformation \(\zeta : f_* D_{f^! K} \rightarrow D_K f_*\), and, provided \(\overline{\omega}_K\), \(\overline{\omega}_{f^! K}\) and \(\zeta\) are isomorphisms, also an induced morphism of Witt groups \(W({\mathcal C}_1, D_{f^! K}, \overline{\omega}_{f^! K}) \rightarrow W({\mathcal C}_2, D_K, \overline{\omega}_K)\). In the present article the authors describe how to apply this abstract closed monoidal setting to well-chosen derived categories of schemes, with the derived functors \(Lf^*\), \(Rf_*\) and its right adjoint \(f^!\) constructed by Grothendieck duality theory. The main result is the definition of a push-forward along a proper morphism \(f : X \rightarrow Y\) of separated Noetherian schemes. In its most general form it is a morphism \(W^i (X, f^! K ) \rightarrow{f_*} W^i (Y , K )\), where \(K\) is a dualizing complex on \(Y\). The authors also establish some fundamental theorems for these push-forwards and provide some computations. In particular, they prove that push-forwards respect composition, and define pull-backs for morphisms of finite tor-dimension as morphisms \(W^i (Y , K ) \rightarrow W^i (X, Lf^* K )\) respecting composition. A flat base change theorem relating the push-forward and the pull-back in Cartesian diagrams and a projection formula in the case of regular schemes are also proven, as well as some explicit computations of transfers.